Prominent Nigerian human rights lawyer, Dele Farotimi, was arrested by the Nigerian Police at Zone 2 Command in Lagos following a petition filed by Tony Elumelu, the chairman of the United Bank for Africa (UBA) Group. The petition accuses Farotimi of making defamatory public statements about Elumelu.
Farotimi, who earlier raised concerns about threats to his life from certain elites allegedly working with security agencies, disclosed details of the police invitation in a statement titled “They Want to Silence Me.” He shared that on November 11, he received an invitation to appear at the Zone 2 Command, which he honored on November 13, accompanied by his legal counsel.
At the station, Farotimi addressed the defamation claims in the petition, which he described as baseless. Despite this, he was detained.
The arrest has sparked criticism from activists and human rights advocates. Omoyele Sowore, a prominent activist, took to his X handle to condemn the incident, calling for Farotimi’s immediate release.
“The Nigerian police must stop being used to settle personal scores. We, the citizens of Nigeria, will not tolerate this,” Sowore stated.
The incident raises questions about the use of law enforcement for personal grievances and the potential stifling of dissent in Nigeria.